Heba Alqurashi
Brunel University London, UK
Title: The impact of the alignment of accreditation, quality and performance management in Saudi hospitals
Biography
Biography: Heba Alqurashi
Abstract
The purpose of this research is to capture the multi-dimensional aspects of integrated health care delivery, to provide valuable evidence of the impact of hospital accreditation programs for performance management, as an effective external assessment scheme and to focus specifically on how following international accreditation standards and maintaining high quality of care improves performances. This research is concerned with the issue of hospitals being overwhelmed by patients as a result of the aging population, increase in chronic diseases and unhealthy lifestyles, which require appropriate management of hospital time and resources. It also addresses the lack of evidence regarding how accreditation, quality of care and performance management are interlinked, specifically in the context of Saudi Arabia, while also arguing that following national and international standards are enablers for achieving performance improvement and high quality care in Saudi hospitals. Quality management is a requirement to minimize the time people stay in hospitals and improve the efficient delivery of health care services. On the other hand, accreditation is an international mean to ensure quality of care and performance improvement. While performance improvement is mainstream in many fields, it is underdeveloped, yet highly pertinent to the healthcare sector in order to improve patient care. The study findings suggest that accreditation is directly linked to performance improvement and is essential for the quality of care in hospitals and staff regular involvement with accreditation results in acceptability of accreditation. It also suggests that management commitment and governmental support are essential for the adoption and implementation of accreditation.